GM-free Scotland

News | September '07 | Join the action

European Union Agricultural Ministers have decided that organic food accidentally contaminated with up to 0.9% GM can still be sold as 'organic' without telling you.

This means that food labelled 'organic' might not be any purer than conventional.

The reasons given for this decision are that a lower GM threshold would be expensive and would “effectively wipe out” the organic sector, and that by simplifying the regulatory system in this way, the European Commission expects to drive further development.

To those who prefer organic because of its superior purity and the natural health of the plants, the decision and reasoning behind it might seem perverse. The success which the organic sector is enjoying at the moment is largely due to its rejection of GM contamination, and it inspires consumer confidence. Organic sales are expected to increase by 50% in the next four years: will this happen if suppliers fail to deliver what their customers expect? Lowering costs for organic farmers while decimating their customer-base through reduced standards doesn't sound like very good business sense.

New testing technologies which are cheaper and more sensitive should become available to improve the purity of all foods: there seems little practical reason to set any level of 'acceptable' GM contamination.

OUR COMMENT

As already pointed out on GMfreescotland.net, the regulation and testing of all foods is now necessary to ensure legality. A higher GM threshold doesn't make this any cheaper nor simpler. The only way to reduce costs and simplify the regulations is to abandon GM in agriculture altogether.

The good news, for us in the UK, is that our Soil Association will continue to certify only food which has no (really no) detectable GM content.

Since the generic E.U. 'organic' logo seems now to be discredited, you might prefer to favour Soil Association-approved products, especially if they contain maize, soya or oilseed rape. You might also like to contact the supplier of the 'organic' products you are choosing not to buy and tell them that you require a guarantee their foods have tested GM free at the limit of detection.

Also, join the organic action in Scotland if you can. The very successful Soil Association Organic Food Festival will be held again in Glasgow this year:

Saturday 13th October, 10 am – 6 pm

and

Sunday 14th October, 10 am - 5 pm

The Old Fruit Market,

Candleriggs, Glasgow

For more information check out www.soilassociation.org

or 'phone Soil Association Scotland 0131-666 2474

GMfreescotland.net will be running a stall on the balcony there. Come and say hello, and join our action too.

SOURCES

About Us | Contact Us |2007 GM-free Scotland